by Charles A. Monagan

Oct 18, 2011

02:00 PM

Make Way for Nanny

Could our own Sen. Richard Blumenthal be any more sanctimonious than when he issues a statement calling for a ban on chewing tobacco among players at the World Series?

First, it shows what a hopeless nerd and nanny Blumenthal is. Any athlete who has been chewing or dipping all season long is not going to stop for the World Series. It's too much of a routine at this point in the season; some players probably even think the tobacco helped get them this far. It would make far more sense for Blumenthal to call for the ban during spring training (assuming he has to do so at all). But of course now is the time he can get the most publicity, and our senator is nothing if not an opportunist.

But second, and probably more important, Blumenthal is worried about young viewers watching the Series on TV and picking up bad habits. But there also are millions of fans, some of them quite impressionable, who watch the U.S. Senate on C-SPAN, and there are quite a few things that Blumenthal should try to get his colleagues to quit for the sake of all those people. Let's start with the epidemic of lying - lying that has become casual and of second nature to so many, both Republicans and Democrats, in the chamber. Then there's that half-crazy spending thing. That's got a hundred million or so Americans pretty upset. And of course there are all the instances of corruption, drunkenness and aberrant sexual behavior.

I could go on, but I think there's a clear message here. Senator Blumenthal, how about getting some of your own institutional problems taken care of before tackling big issues like baseball players chewing tobacco? We'll be responsible for our own private, legal vices and the way our kids handle them. You take care of our crumbling republic.